full title: US aircraft carrier was stalked for days by a UFO travelling at 'ballistic missile speed' which could hover above the sea for six days, leaked Pentagon report reveals Unclassified 2009 Pentagon report on a Navy encounter with a UFO has leaked F-18s encountered the strange object off the coast of Mexico in November 2004 Previously released video shows the object flying at incredible speeds New report suggests it may have been docking with an underwater craft Object was white, 46 feet long, shaped like a Tic-Tac with no wings or nacelles Descended from 60,000 feet to 50 feet...

With a new Navy plan to retire nearly half its F/A-18A/B/C/D fleet in the near term to help boost the readiness of its youngest so called "legacy Hornets," which the USMC will inherit in the not so distant future, the Corps is now moving to upgrade seven squadrons worth of jets with new active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars. The move signifies the most substantial capability upgrade in the legacy Hornet's entire history. In a posting on the government's contracting site FBO.gov it states that the USMC is looking to install the systems "in 4th Quarter 2020 and complete in...

BERLIN (Reuters) - The German Defence Ministry said on Monday that the European fighter jet was the leading candidate to replace its Tornado jets, which it wants to start phasing out in 2025. The ministry’s position appears to contradict that of the German air force, whose chief indicated last month that he preferred Lockheed Martin’s F-35, which meets the military’s requirements of stealth and long-distance operational capabilities. In a letter to a Greens lawmaker who had inquired about the deliberations, the ministry said the F-35 and Boeing’s F-15 and F-18 fighters were secondary options. “The indicated view of the inspector...

The move underlines Ottawa's anger at a decision by Boeing to launch a trade challenge against Canadian planemaker Bombardier OTTAWA — Canada is scrapping a plan to buy 18 Boeing Super Hornet fighter jets amid a deepening dispute with the U.S. aerospace company, three sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday. Instead, the Liberal government will announce next week it intends to acquire a used fleet of older Australia F-18 jets, the same kind of plane Canada currently operates, said the sources, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the situation. The move underlines Ottawa’s...

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is visiting New Delhi at a delicate moment for American defence sales to India. Having rung up $15-18 billion in defence sales to New Delhi in the last decade, Washington is backing the US defence industry’s drive for a second wave of contracts that could add up to another $18-25 billion. Addressing the media with Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj in New Delhi on Wednesday, Tillerson stated: “[W]e are willing to provide India advanced technologies for its military modernisation efforts. This includes ambitious offers from American industry for F-16 and F/A-18 fighter planes.” On October...

Canada's plan to shop for used Australian fighter jets rather than buy new Boeing Super Hornets may backfire, according to defence experts, because the U.S. government will ultimately have a say on whether a deal proceeds. Even though the FA-18 Hornets are nearly three decades old, require regular corrosion maintenance and are nearing obsolescence, their proposed resale would still require Washington's approval because they are advanced warplanes, originally manufactured in the U.S., a former Royal Australian Air Force officer told CBC News. "I imagine all of it is going for a fair bargain price," said Peter Layton, a fellow at...

Global defence equipment major Boeing on Monday said that its F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter aircraft is compatible with India's current naval carrier platforms and that they can be produced in the country under the government's "Make in India" initiative. "Analytical and (computer) simulations have shown that the F/A-18 is compatible with the current carrier fleet of the Indian Navy. The results of the test have been submitted in response to a global RFI issued by the Navy," said Pratyush Kumar, President, Boeing India. Presently, the Indian Navy's aircraft carriers' utilise "ski-jump ramps" for fighter aircraft to take-off. Kumar spoke to...

An Iranian drone nearly collided with a U.S. Navy F-18 Super Hornet while the American jet was in a holding pattern, a U.S. defense official told Fox News. The jet was about to land aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz, which recently arrived in the Persian Gulf. It was the first time an Iranian drone has “interrupted a flight pattern,” the official said.

The arrival of the USS George HW Bush in British waters to participate in exercise Saxon Warrior with the Royal Navy provided a useful opportunity to meet US naval aviators who have recently completed combat missions against ISIS in the Middle East. Although they are very different, inevitable comparisons will also be made between the Nimitz class CVN and the Queen Elizabeth class CVF, which deserve to be put in perspective. The US Navy’s Carrier Strike Group 2 have been in action in the Middle East for almost 7 months and there was a high tempo of operations with 99...

Everything about the aircraft carrier is analyzed these days. How vulnerable they are. How vulnerable they aren’t. How easy it is to sink one with a French attack submarine. How big they should be. How small they should be. Should we even have them at all? Yet most of these arguments have lost sight of the fact that the only reason a carrier exists is to take its air wing into battle. The air wing—the actual aircraft on the aircraft carrier, naturally—is the true measurement of a carrier’s worth. Without the air wing we wouldn’t need these ships at all....

A fighter pilot was forced to eject during an attempted landing on the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson in the Celebes Sea, south of the Philippines, the US Navy has said. The pilot was recovered safely. The F/A-18E fighter jet, which was part of Carrier Air Wing 2, was on final landing approach after conducting “routine flight operations,” US 7th Fleet Command said in a statement. The incident is under investigation. “There are no apparent injuries at this time,” the Navy said, noting that the pilot has been evaluated by medical personnel aboard the Carl Vinson. The carrier is the...

A trio of Connecticut Democratic lawmakers is calling President-elect Donald Trump’s calls for finding an alternative to the F-35 a “total nonstarter.” “Any suggestion that there is a substitute for the F-35 is a total nonstarter,” Reps. Joe Courtney, Rosa DeLauro and John Larson said in a statement Friday. “This is a program that has been vetted ad nauseum by the Pentagon, the Congress and independent experts. There is simply no aircraft in production today that can compare with the F-35’s advanced avionics, networked capabilities and integrated stealth.” On Thursday, Trump took aim at the F-35 fighter jet for the...

NORFOLK, VA. (NNS) -- Two F/A-18F Super Hornets assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 211 flying off the coast of Cape Hatteras were involved in an in-flight mishap at approximately 10:40 a.m. local time. The flight was part of a routine training mission. All aircrew have been recovered and are en route to medical facilities for evaluation. The F/A-18F is a two-seat aircraft. VFA-211 is based at Naval Air Station Oceana. A safety investigation will be carried out to determine the cause of the accident.

The U.S. Air Force might buy 72 upgraded F-15, F-16 or even F-18 fighter aircraft due to low F-35 production rates and the high cost of the F-35. The U.S. Air Force â€śis struggling to afford 48 F-35s a yearâ€ť for the first years of full-rate production a senior Air Force officer told Aerospace Daily & Defense Report. Full rate-production is slated to begin in 2019 and the U.S. Air Force wants to buy 60 planes in 2020, and 80 F-35 per year after that. This year, the Air Force is to receive 28 F-35s, whereas in 2016 the number...

The two-person crew of a Marine Corps jet is safe after a crash Sunday near Statenville, Ga. The F/A-18 Hornet was with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 224 based out of Beaufort, S.C., and was part of the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing at Cherry Point, according to Michael Barton, deputy director of the public affairs office at Cherry Point. The pilot, Maj. Rick Nicka and the weapons officer, 1st Lt. Robert Reynolds, ejected from the jet and were treated for minor injuries at South Georgia Medical Center 19 miles away in Valdosta, Ga., according to a release. Barton said the plane...

Spectacular footage of F/A-18 Hornets and Super Hornets as they takeoff and land aboard an aircraft carrier. Impressive footage of the aircraft as they fly at low levels above the water, conduct banking and rolling maneuvers at high speed, and make high speed passes over the carrier in tandem formation and Bombing in Syria. Filmed from the cockpit and pilot point-of-view. Film Credits: Lt. Ian Schmidt, Lt. J.G. Michael Hatfield, Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Jared King

Canadian taxpayers will likely be on the hook for millions of dollars to keep the country’s aged CF18 fighter jets flying into the next decade because of delays in finding a replacement aircraft, secret documents show. The revelation represents the latest wrinkle in what has become one of the most troubled military procurement projects in Canadian history, which continues to sit in limbo as the countdown to next year’s election begins. The backbone of Canada’s air force, the CF18s were purchased in the early 1980s with the idea they would be retired in 2003. Instead, $2.6 billion was spent on...

Russia has cut a deal with Sudan to deliver a dozen advanced MiG-29 Fulcrum jet fighters to the war-torn country. The deal, announced Christmas Day in Moscow, also includes 14 MiG-29 jets for Yemen. The transfer of fourth-generation MiG-29 Fulcrums to Sudan has raised concerns inside the Pentagon and is certain to alter any possible U.S. plans for air strikes at known terrorist bases inside the African nation. Sudan was cited as one of a limited number of nations with direct links to the Al-Qaeda terrorist network. The U.S. State Department also listed Sudan as one of a few hostile ...